


30 ML of Children's Benadryl On A Saturday Night

by Pepsi (Pepsiiii)



Category: Hades (Video Game 2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Character Study, Hypnos fucks around and everyone watches with varying levels of intrest, M/M, Minor Original Character(s), Minor Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-16 11:49:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,125
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28706205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pepsiiii/pseuds/Pepsi
Summary: Anyway, Hypnos (assuming you aren’t Thanatos or Nyx) was probably the nicest guy you’d ever meet.Or; A character study into a more modern, more human Hypnos
Relationships: Achilles & Hypnos (Hades Video Game), Charon & Hypnos & Thanatos (Hades Video Game), Hypnos & Thanatos (Hades Video Game), Hypnos & Zagreus (Hades Video Game)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 43





	30 ML of Children's Benadryl On A Saturday Night

**Author's Note:**

> I don't like Thanatos or Nxy so if you ride for them really hard I'd say... read this anyway because it's really good. 
> 
> Sorry if this Hypnos is ooc! I think he's quite enjoyable like this but I digress. If you ever want to know what kinda guy I see him as go listen to anything by Zack Fox. That's my Hypnos.

Once when Hypnos was 12 he walked in a puddle the size of his body.

It was massive. So big it seemed to never end from his place on the sidewalk; dark and murky. He doesn’t remember it raining the day prior either, so he really doesn’t know where it came from. Anyway, he was going to walk past it, but before he could move he felt an uncontrollable urge to step in it. This urge, probably originating within his chest (or perhaps his spleen) was as unforeseen as the giant puddle itself. He couldn’t tell you where it came from (except maybe the spleen or chest, specifically left lung— that one always gave him trouble) but the urge ate at him for what felt like forever (2 minutes) until he finally gave in and stepped in the puddle. 

He soaked his entire foot, from sole to sock; leaving a trail of mud in his wake as he walked the rest of the way to school. He ended up getting in trouble for tracking mud everywhere within the halls and that led to his school calling his mother to come and give him a change of shoes. She didn’t come, _of course_ , and instead, he was stuck walking around the rest of the day with a plastic bag on his right foot (sockless) trying to ignore the sinking feeling in his chest. He later slipped and fell in a puddle of chocolate milk during lunch and had to go home because he got a knot on his head. He sat, as children do on occasion, in the back of the car and watched as his crusty brown muddy sock swung next to his soggy, overly sweet brown chocolatey sock and thought about how uncomfortable it was to have wet fabric encasing your foot. 

  
  
  


“ _Thanatos_ is just mad I get bitches and he doesn’t get _shit_ —let alone a _job promotion_.” Hypnos spits out as he drops himself in Zagreus’ front seat.

“Bitches? What bitches have _you_ got?” 

Hypnos looks over, probably towards Zagreus, but it’s hard to tell with the darkness enveloping them within the car. It’s late as shit, leaning closer to the morning than the night at this point, and Zagreus was utterly exhausted (but anyone would be exhausted after hanging out with Hypnos for longer than 2 minutes) but even with that in mind he still came to aid his … _best friend_ in his most pressing time of need. His payment for said aid is a wonderful cocktail of Hypnos glaring at him as he nurses the black eye he now wears, his car shaking as the heater begins to turn on in earnest and the faint smell of saltwater from the trip to the beach they all took the day prior. The sand is still _everywhere_ (he can feel it between his fingers on the steering wheel).

“I got more bitches than both of you combined. They can’t get off my dick! Monday through Friday I’m beating them off with a damn stick.”

“ _A stick_?”

“Anything else is a form of assault or something. Fuck if I know. _Can we go now_? The longer I stay in this part of town the longer I feel like I’m gonna get jumped.” Hypnos mutters out the last part, almost like a command but more likely like a badly phrased plea. His eye is a nasty purple, some tear stains coating his face— dried. 

“This is the safest neighborhood in the whole city probably. No, no it _definitely_ is.” 

“Yeah? My left eye would say otherwise. Let’s go before some good citizen decides to finish the job and make a 2-week permanent hangover.”

“What?”

“Like- I don’t know, a _concussion_ ? Hangover but like— like _longer_.” Hypnos stutters over the words a bit. Zagreus couldn’t say this for sure but it’s almost as if the idea doesn’t fit in his mouth in the first place; harder to explain. 

“That doesn’t make sense. Hypnos, hangovers, and concussions are actually quite different. Not to toot my own horn or anything but I’ve had both, many times mind you, and let me say a concussion is—”

“ _For fucks sake_ —Zag can we just go? Christ.” 

The tone of his voice was hard to explain, hard to really place since it was such a rare sort of energy (that was previously to Zagreus’ knowledge, unknown and surprisingly unfitting considering Hypnos as a person at all) but if he had to describe it he’d say: _truly and utterly fucking exhausted._ With that in mind Zagreus sighs and closes his mouth; hits the gas as normally as possible and drives away.

  
  
  


Hypnos was really _‘chill’_ and _‘kind’_ to everyone that wasn’t his twin brother and mother. 

It was surprisingly difficult to rile Hypnos up. He was one of those people that took whatever life threw at him and interpreted it as some sort of elaborate joke set up by the universe for his sole pleasure and entertainment. This probably wouldn’t say much if Hypnos was rich and happy and abundantly “ _okay”_ within his life. But, he isn’t any of those things anymore (save for maybe happy. He was pretty happy all things considered) so instead of coming off like an _‘out of touch with real issues and incompetent’_ type of jackass he came off as an _‘I’m down-bad but the glass is always half full’_ type of jackass (which is considerably more tolerable and manageable). 

He doesn’t really get mad, not unless he’s gone without sleep; he doesn’t get too sad, not in any way that's obvious or matters at least; he isn’t prone to aggression or emotional repression like his family tends to be either. He just … (in his own words) is a _‘happy little ray of sunshine doing his best to shine within a never-ending shadow_ ’. 

Quite poetic too. 

Anyway, Hypnos (assuming you aren’t Thanatos or Nyx) was probably the nicest guy you’d ever meet. 

He isn’t the nicest guy Zagreus has ever met, not for a lack of trying (Zagreus just didn’t care for him that much in the grand scheme of things), but he was still pretty damn nice. They hadn’t known each other for too long, only a handful of years in childhood. Passing each other in hallways during separate sleepovers—Zagreus with Thanatos and Hypnos with his friendly, new Hulu subscription; sitting at the same table for 5th grade English class and asking each other for some spare pencil led and then promptly stopping 4 weeks into school once the use of all pencils was banned in exchange for a more _refined_ penmanship known as _‘ink pen only’;_ sometimes bumping elbows for a bit in the back of the car when Zagreus was invited to go anywhere with the family (Thanatos riding shotgun closest to Nyx; Charon in his car seat on the left side of the car, sucking on his gold theme pacifier while wearing his ‘ _I’m the BOSS, BABY!’_ onesie someone got for him as a gift; Zagreus and Hypnos in the back, closest to the trunk, quietly staring out the window. Eventually, Zagreus moved to sit in the empty seat next to Charon— switching places with the baby bag and giving Hypnos a new, more talkative riding partner). Stuff like that. 

But then, at some undefinable point (Theseus’ _Super-Senior Graduation Party_ , circa June 10th, 2018 at 11:27 PM) things changed between them drastically. No longer were they just two guys who happened to have one guy in common (a brother for one and a … _something else_ … _maybe friend_ , for the other) and in turn knew each other through that guy and little else. Now, they were two guys who knew each other.

_Kinda_. 

And really, isn’t ‘ _kinda’_ relationships the strongest ones there are? 

Hypnos woke up one night at the ripe age of 13 and 5 quarters and realized he might be far more alone than he originally thought. His childish misconceptions of the world had begun to fade with every passing day now, so it only made sense that the first thing to go was that childish sense of togetherness and love he had conditioned himself to feel, regardless of if he'd ever actually experienced it. It was, like all realizations made at the age of 13 and 2 quarters, extremely sobering and ruined his life for the immeasurable period of about 6 weeks. This all spiraled out of control in a major incident that is of no importance here, but it originated from a simple act of his mother. Thanatos got a new toy mouse to love and squeeze to his little heart's content while Hypnos got a 10 ML dose of children's Benadryl to help his allergies calm down and to put him to sleep sooner rather than later. 

The cherry taste is a comfort he seldom remembers now. He much prefers grape.

  
  
  


At some point during the first hours of his official freedom from the horrible state institution known as public highschool, Hypnos found himself with his tongue down the throat of some guy he shared AP English with for a whole year. He couldn’t tell you the guy’s name (Aesop) nor could he tell you why they were kissing like the world was about to end (they sat next to each other in class and shared glances when the teacher started spouting bullshit, always sent each other snaps about the homework answers, and waited by the door for the other to walk up before heading into class— they had a _relationship_ of sorts) but they were and it was great. Hypnos was, at this point, still pretty reserved when it came to physical forms of affection and showed this by gasping at the hint of literally any touch. The guy wasn’t doing much better but regardless they were together and drinking each other up like starving men in a desert or maybe a regular person in California during the summery peak of fire season.

Hypnos pulled away from the guy with a pop and caught his breath a bit. He’d been a high school graduate for about 7 hours or so at that point and was loving every second of it. He couldn’t wipe the giddy smile off his face, bright and excited; syrupy sweet with the newfound nectar of hard-earned legality and spit. He tasted the Sunkist he chugged a few minutes prior to this little meetup (“ _I thought you hated soda?” The guy said as they walked away from the living room, music playing loudly and surrounding them like a curtain. “I don’t care for it, that’s true, but tonight is about letting go! So here I am!” For emphasis he shows his empty hands to Aesop and says “See? Let go!”. Aesop laughed)_ which was now mixed with the artificial fruity taste of Hawaiian Punch (from the kissing). The flavor was terrible but electrifying. 

He was leaning back in for more, and who wouldn’t with Mr. _I-Write-Fables-Unlike-The-World-Has-Ever-Seen_ right there, but was stopped at the last moment by a shove. Hypnos turned around expecting to see some other person he sat next to for 12 months straight and can’t remember the name of (who also wanted to get busy) but no, all he saw was one very red, very angry looking Zagreus. Enraged is probably a better word but Hypnos never insisted that he in the moment, or at any time, was good with words in any capacity. 

“Ow- oh, hey Zag, what’s up?”

“Why the fuck are you making out with your brother’s boyfriend?”

“ _My what’s huh?_ Zag what the fuck are you talking about?”

“Aesop. He’s with Thanatos.”  
  


Hypnos stops and looks back at the now concerned looking guy in question. 

“No, he isn’t Zagreus.”

“Yes the fuck he is. Thanatos told me! You’re his brother Hypnos what the fuck is wrong with you?”

“Yeah, exactly. _I’m_ his brother. I’d know if he had a boyfriend Zagreus. Thanatos can’t hide shit from our mom, he would've told her instantly, which means that I would’ve found out because she would ask him about it and then sneakily tell me to fuck off at any given time... _ALSO_ , what the fuck man? That shove hurt like hell.” Hypnos says. His chest probably had a bruise because he bruises as easily as a peach and also Zagreus is stupidly strong. He’s also stupidly stupid, as shown by his expression morphing from an anger-filled glare that could melt an ice cap into pure, undiluted dread. 

“He lied...to— _me_ .” Zagreus grits out. He looked hurt. _Really_ hurt. More hurt than Hypnos was equipped to deal with during a normal interaction let alone one that started during the best (only) makeout he’s ever been in. his brain was still leaking out of his ears, orange was still sugary on his tongue and Aesop was holding his hand (slowly pulling him closer). 

He probably should’ve wished Zagreus some luck, pointed him towards the nearest dark corner, handed him some booze and grape Fanta, and called it a night. Gone back to his non-cheating friend to finish what was started. He should've just turned around and enjoyed something for himself for once. _Just once_. 

But he didn’t. He pulled away from the guy (whom he would never see again because said guy promptly died 8 months later tragically when he was jumped and promptly beaten half to death and then, miraculously, got away— only to be caught again and thrown off the highest cliff in the surrounding area. It was so brutal that was on the news for a solid 4 days and won his family over 8 million in court for emotional and physical damages. The killers were, unfortunately, never found) and pulled a sulking and heartbroken Zagreus home. 

He never did find out exactly what happened between them but it caused a riff, a fucking canyon more accurately, and while Hypnos nursed his cold can of white-claw (the only alcohol his mother kept in the house) he watched as Zagreus avoided Thanatos and leaned towards him as he left the following morning, he could only think about how roomy Zagreus’ life was now that Hypnos had it all to himself. 

  
  
  


Hypnos worked at what was— BASICALLY (if you took all the golden fixtures and weirdly gothic vibes away) a _Bath And Body Works_ and was the manager. He grew up around the literal owner and, as such, was the second in command when it came to all affairs too simplistic to be brought to the attention of his big boss. So Hypnos, as the second in command at the humble age of 24, was working as a sales associate/manager within this A-list establishment. While in this prestigious position he outranks a number of people. 

One of those people being resident stockroom mule and occasional doorman of the esteemed beauty product and signature fragrance store: _House of Hades_ (again, not technically a _Bath And Body Works_ ), _Achilles Pelides_ — also known as the saddest motherfucker Hypnos has ever fucking met. 

Achilles Pelides was 35 years old, or maybe 45 (Hypnos didn’t keep track of ages that well), the whitest man Hypnos has ever had the displeasure of meeting and truly hated his life. Hypnos didn’t have all the details, but something about how he’s divorced from the love of his life (his previous, and only, husband) and now life (without the love) has literally no meaning. 

Hypnos felt it was his purpose to aid those in trouble and Achilles was the human personification of ‘trouble’. He had a weird grab-bag worth of anger issues and worrying morals but putting all that aside he was easy to mess with and kinda cute when he glared at Hypnos like he wanted to snap his neck in two. 

“Achilles let me ask you a question man.”

Achilles, as usual when prompted by Hypnos while on shift, ignores him. They’re currently taking inventory in the back of the store, far from the peering eyes of grabby customers. 

“Do you think romance is real?”

Hypnos, admittedly, is a bit of a dick. 

Achilles stills, and glares from where he’s restocking the hand sanitizer shelf. The room smells of pure undiluted alcohol and artificial pineapple (summer scents, the bane of Achilles’ existence and the beauty of Hypnos’). If Achilles wanted to kill him he totally could, assuming Hypnos didn’t get a chance to fight back.

“It is.” Achilles utters. Hypnos nods and keeps going down the list. 

Truthfully, Hypnos didn’t mean to step on an emotional landmine. He never does. But with people like Achilles (broken-hearted bastards that are so down bad they can’t even remember what the sky looks like), it’s simply impossible to take a step and not hit a bomb. He’d have an easier job purposefully trying to set them off all at once. So, be reminded, he isn’t trying to hurt Achilles. Not purposefully.

He is hurting him though. Very much. 

“Nothing feels better than love… that’s how real it is…” Hypnos hears, almost like a whisper from across from him.

“Mm… well said, Achilles. Well said!”

There is silence, save for the quick scribbles from Hypnos’ writing on the clipboard. Achilles is obviously hurting, but quietly.

“But, not to say you’re wrong or anything, have you ever woken up mid blowjob? Or like- no wait… wait. No. Have you ever woken up mid-anything? Now _that_ is a real feeling. Might even top love.”

“...”

“I don’t know man, just something about not being awake, already amazing, and then suddenly being awake but like y'know- _awake.”_

“...”

“Y’know…?”

Achilles puts his box down and leaves the room. Hypnos blinks as he takes in the half-finished job in front of him Achilles left.

“... yeah he gets it.” Hypnos mutters and goes back to his list, checking and recounting over and over, ignoring the sound of a constant honking outside the building. 

  
  
  


No one will _ever_ say it but here’s the concrete, non-disclosed, _totally-true-and-never-false_ , truth of the matter.

Zagreus used to be in love with Thanatos but after an incident in high school, or just after technically, he no longer has romantic feelings for that brother. Thanatos is still (and always was) in love with Zagreus but after an incident in high school (yes the very same) he finds it hard to even talk to Zagreus, let alone confess his feelings to him— he now envies his brother. Hypnos, after getting actual mental counseling in the first year out of highschool (caused by an incident that is separate from the previously referenced incidents but still pretty messy) and realizing therapy is beneficial within his life isn’t fond of lying to himself anymore and doesn’t care for either his brother or his issues, Zagreus included.

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked this drop a comment !! They really mean a lot to creators! Also, check me out on twt @MrsHaiiba for art and writing mess.


End file.
